The Butler: Threatened
by PyrroLou
Summary: Both the Phantomhive household and the Shinigami Dispatch Society are struck dumb, as a strange series of murders occur that involves them both. The Phantomhive name is being threatened, and there are souls at stake. What kind of killer could have done all this? How is this even possible? Who will solve the mystery?
1. Prologue

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, but I do own the OC's in this story._

_I made this story up just after the 8th volume of the manga, basically after the Noah's Ark Circus arc. It doesn't have anything to do with it, but all the stuff with Undertaker in the Ship Voyage arc and such hasn't happened yet, so please keep that in mind while reading._

_Oh and by the way, this is my first fanfiction, please tell me what you think, but don't be too harsh._

**Prologue**

'I found this little one in a tree nearby,' Grell said, sipping his tea. 'You should take care of your kitties better, Sebastian! Otherwise I might just refuse to live together with you, if you can't even take care of a cat!'

'This isn't one of my cats,' Sebastian said, apparently ignoring Grell's remark about living together. They were drinking tea in the garden, just outside the Phantomhive mansion. Birds were singing in the trees, Finny was weeding in the distance, and, thanks to Sebastian, the garden actually looked _good_ for once, with its beautiful roses and green bushes. Grell and Sebastian were sitting near the entrance to the mansion, Sebastian petting the little ginger kitty Grell had found. You would almost think that nothing interesting was going on. 'But what did you want to tell me about those murders?'

'There has been a lot going on in the office lately,' Grell said. 'Normally, Will would've never allowed me to do something like this. They even allowed me to use my chainsaw! I mean, those scissors were nice and all, but goodness, what have I missed this baby!' Grell lifted his Death Scythe, and said: "_Desu_!" with a rock hand and his tongue out of his mouth.

'So soft… Yes, please continue, mister Sutcliff.'

'O please, Sebby, don't be such a hardhead! You're always so strict! If only you were a little less…' Grell didn't have time to finish his sentence, as he attempted to gently sweep Sebastian's cheek. Sebastian grabbed his wrist and tackled him before he could even touch his skin. The kitty in his lap jumped off and meowed.

'Could you please provide me with useful information, instead of trying out your newest pervert tricks on me,' he said with that typical calmness in his voice and a smile on his face.

'Okay, okay, calm down!' Grell got up and dusted off his clothes. 'Well, the victims have been…'

'…pierced with an incredible inhuman strength. That's exactly what Undertaker told us.' The kitty jumped in Sebastian's lap again. 'If that was all you had to tell me, then I just wasted some Earl Grey Tea on you.'

'No! No! I haven't told you everything yet! The best part is yet to come!'

'Well, how curious I am.'

'None of their souls have been reaped.' Silence. Even the birds seemed to have stopped singing.

'So that means…their souls were devoured by demons?' Sebastian asked after a while.

'Don't ask me,' Grell said. 'It could have been like that one time, with the camera, that their souls were burnt. I can't say anything for certain, though. There are many ways a soul can "disappear". That's why the job of a _Shinigami_ is so important.'

'You don't always seem to be taking that job seriously, though.'

'Ah, stop it, Sebasu-chan! You make me go wild!'

'SEBASTIAN!' Ciel's voice called from inside the mansion. Sebastian got up and put down the kitty.

'Mey-rin!' Sebastian yelled. Her big glasses looked around the door of the mansion. 'Could you please clean up these cups? And don't run through the mansion – DON'T run through the mansion.'

'Yes, Sebastian,' Mey-rin said. 'He said it twice again…'

'Will you please follow me inside, mister Sutcliff?'

'Ah, yes, Sebastian!'

_And, was it good? Please tell me what you thought! This was only the prologue. __There's a lot more coming up…_


	2. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, but I do own the OC's in this story._

_So, just a quick note, every chapter follow's the thoughts of one character in the third person. That character's name is above the title, just to avoid confusion. So you're following the thoughts of someone. This will get interesting with Grell… This was also why the Prologue was so short, because it didn't follow anyone's thoughts in particular. Enjoy!_

_**Ronald Knox**_

**Chapter 1**

His surroundings were blurry because of his tears. Everyone was staring at him, but he didn't care. Nothing mattered, as he was sitting there on the ground, sobbing his heart out, the girl from the Administrative Division kneeling in front of him, her hand on his shoulder.

'No,' Ronald whispered. He was holding the glasses of Terrence Westrope, his colleague and friend. The frame was slim and blue. Just like always.

Only there was a different colour as well.

Red. There was blood on the frame.

'I'm afraid...he isn't with us anymore, Ronald,' said the girl from the Administrative Division. 'If you'd like to come with me, I will…'

'NO!' Ronald shouted. 'I can't believe it! I refuse to believe! A _Shinigami_ can only be killed with a very lethal blow! Terry is tough…and he… was with William…' Ronald looked up at her as tears were rolling down his cheeks. 'William?' he nearly whispered the question, but his voice was leaving him as the heartrending truth slowly seized him.

'William is…still alive,' the girl answered his question. 'Would you like to see him? He's currently at the infirmary.' Ronald sobbed. He couldn't think properly, all he could do was let the tears come out. He rarely cried, but…gosh, he just couldn't believe it all. William was hurt, Terry was…wherever he was. He wasn't dead. Ronald refused to believe he was dead. It was simply impossible.

'Ronald,' the girl from the Administrative Division said, 'please answer.' Ronald sobbed, trembling like crazy. He didn't know what he was expecting to see at the infirmary, and whether he could take it or not. His tears made him feel sick and dizzy.

'Is William okay?' he asked.

'He'll make it,' the girl said. 'William is a strong person.' So was Terry, Ronald thought. He sobbed. 'C'mon now, I'll get you a glass of water. Can you please follow me?' The girl helped him up and led him to the bathroom. Ronald couldn't see whether it was the boy's or the girl's room.

'There you go,' she said and gave him a glass of water. 'Drink up.' Ronald tried to drink it, but he was still trembling and sobbing so badly, that the glass was shaking so much that it was impossible to drink. He was leaning against the wall, still holding Terry's glasses.

'Now, come on, Ronald,' the girl from the Administrative Division said, 'don't cry.' She brushed away his tears with a paper towel. 'You're a big, strong _Shinigami_, right? The kind we dream about at the Administrative Division, the type we want little _Shinigamis_ with.' Ronald made a futile attempt at smiling. 'Now I want you to take a very deep breath and just clear your mind. Don't think about anything.' Ronald inhaled and exhaled very slowly. His vision was clearing and the trembling nearly stopped, although he still felt sick and he still had a pounding headache. He sipped his water and looked in the mirror. His eyes, behind his glasses, were red from crying, and his cheeks were wet. He could see the reflection of the girl from the Administrative Division and the perfectly white tiles behind them.

'Do you wish to see William?' the girl asked. Ronald shrugged his shoulders.

'I don't know,' he said. 'Is it bad?'

'I could only take a look at him for a second when he was brought in. It wasn't very…pretty, but they've probably patched him up by now…' There was a flicker of doubt in her voice, but it wasn't enough to stop Ronald.

'Well then, let's go.' 

Ronald was shocked to find William unconscious on an infirmary bed. He was stripped to the waist, and a couple of wounds on his right shoulder, chest and side had been bound up. It was strange to see William like this, in a hospital bed in the white infirmary, his Death Scythe leaning against the wall, his glasses still on his nose. Ronald smiled. Will would never break the most important rule of the _Shinigami_: always wear your glasses.

Clive Goody was sitting next to William's bed on a chair. Clive was a good friend of William, and he had been on a group date with Eric and Ronald a long time ago. Clive's green eyes weren't red from crying, but he looked extremely shocked. He was talking to either himself or his Death Scythe.

'I never thought this would happen to him…out of all people,' Clive said.

'You tell me,' Ronald said. Clive, who hadn't seen him enter, nearly got the fright of his life.

'Ronald Knox, isn't it?' Clive said, standing up. He wasn't a very tall _Shinigami_, but with his bright orange hair, black glasses with slim frame, in his suit and with his crowbar he looked quite badass. But Ronald knew he was a really nice guy.

'That's the name,' Ronald said. Seeing William like this shocked him, and he felt tears welling up again. What was wrong with him today? Crying in front of the girls from the Administrative Division was one thing. He knew some of them liked emotional men, and it was always good if the girls from the Administrative Division liked you, but crying in front of a male colleague? Never.

'How's William doin'?' Ronald asked Clive.

'He's stable.' Ronald seemed to have lost his tongue, so he just nodded and bit his lower lip.

'I know it must be even harder for you. I never really hung out with Terry, but you often did… I just want to tell you that it's no crime to show some emotion now and then.'

'Emotion?' Ronald said. 'I'm not really into that.'

'Oh, just quit the big talk, Ronald. You can obviously see that you've cried. And the girls of the Administrative Division are telling everyone.'

'Hey!'

'What I meant was, that this kind of pain might help us understand what the death we work with every day feels like. We experience a little bit of the pain of everyone we meet every single day.'

Ronald sighed.

'Death is cruel,' he said, 'but nothin' is endless.'

'The unknown is always looking down on us. Death comes in many shapes and forms. We can only tell that it's the ending of something, and, for most people, the beginning of something new. Your last day, is when you'll simply jump in the hands of the unknown.'

'What's with all the philosophical death-stuff, Clive?'

'I've been a _Shinigami_ longer than you, Ronald. I've had a long time to think about death and the way it can come. You'll find out certain things yourself, someday.'

'What you forgot,' William's voice said, 'is that death is inevitable, for everyone. Even for us, _Shinigami_.'

'William!' Clive yelled. William opened his eyes and adjusted his glasses.

'I'm not dead, nor am I deaf, so you don't have to shout, Clive.'

'So, you're not dead then,' Ronald said. Well, he thought, if William is alive, why isn't Terry here as well?

'Ronald Knox,' William said. 'Why are you here?'

'William,' Clive said. 'Ronald was one of Terry's best friends.'

'Oh,' William seemed flabbergasted. It was silent for a couple of seconds. 'Ronald, I…' The way he was speaking left no doubt; bad news.

'He…' Ronald stuttered. 'He isn't…'

'Ronald, I…'

'NO!' Ronald was trembling. Again. What was _wrong_ with him today?! 'He is NOT dead! He can't be dead! I refuse to believe it!'

'Ronald…'

'If you survived, then where is Terry? He's a tough guy, at least as tough as you, William! He can't be dead!'

'Ronald!' Clive interrupted him. He grabbed Ronald's shoulders and looked him in the eyes. 'It's a miracle William is still here. Don't you think Terry would be here if he could?' Ronald sobbed. Again.

'Ronald,' William said. 'It all went extremely fast. I couldn't see what was going on, I just attacked. But the enemy was too strong, even for the two of us. Terry and I were both in bad shape. We tried to escape, but we couldn't. Terry sacrificed himself to give me some more time to get away. It was extremely dangerous, and he knew that it would most likely cost him his life, but he just, faced that one inevitable thing… He hit our attacker a couple of times with his baseball bat, and that way I could get away in time. Others found his body later on.'

'Ronald, there are some tears on your cheek,' Clive remarked and handed him his hanky. Ronald couldn't believe it… Terry…was dead? He had saved William's life, otherwise they would've both died, but Terry… just jumped into the hands of the unknown.

'Clive, who's currently leading the department?' William asked.

'At the moment I'm doing it,' Clive responded, 'but if you want someone else to do it…'

'No, you're fine. As long as it isn't…well, you know who.'

'Ah… Why so negative, Will?' Grell's voice said behind them. Ronald looked to his right, seeing the red reaper standing next to him, waving at mister Spears.

'Oh goodness,' William said. 'How did you get in here?'

'I thought you might need some…company, if you know what I mean…' Grell sat down on the empty bed next to William's.

'Who is this man?' Clive asked.

'Man?!' Grell said, shocked. 'I'm as feminine as a mare!'

'This,' William said, 'is the…notorious Grim Reaper Grell Sutcliff.'

'And how can it be that we didn't hear you enter, Mister Mare?'

'Maybe because Ronald was too busy sobbing?'

'Just cut it out already!' William said. 'Clive, I'm going to leave…these two with you. I'm tired. Just find them something to do.'

'On it, William. I will see you later. Come on, Ronald and Mare.' 

'I'll just give you the rest of the day off,' Clive told Ronald. 'You've been through enough today. Will you be okay?'

'I'm fine,' Ronald said. Clive and he were standing in some kind of hallway, decorated with those odd posters for short- and far-sighted people. 'I'll have to cancel the group date for tonight. I don't really feel up to it.'

'Do whatever you want. I can understand that you want to cancel the date, but I can also imagine that you feel like having a little bit of fun after today. Just make sure that you sleep well tonight and we'll see what you can do tomorrow, okay?'

'Thanks, Clive. You're a good lad.'

'Don't mention it. I should really go and find a job for Grell. I'll see you tomorrow.' Ronald exited the building. Terry had saved William's life. What if he had been there with William? He wasn't as brave as Terry, and it wasn't very easy to beat in someone's head with a lawn mower. But what if the three of them had been there? Would he have stayed with Terry or would he have left with William? Terry would have probably begged him to leave with William. Would he give in and go with William or would he stick with Terry? Ronald didn't know. He just needed time to think.

_Please tell me your opinion. Was it too OC or can you imagine Ronald like this? If you're wondering whether Sebastian and Ciel will be in this fanfiction or not, don't worry, you'll see them in the next chapter._


	3. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, but I do own the OC's in this story. (forgot this one sentence, had to remove the chapter to add it in…whoops)_

_Thank you for all the views! I kind of messed up the lines between the paragraphs in the last chapter. I've got a temporary solution for it, but if someone can explain to me how to add in those lines properly, that would be highly appreciated. But for the rest of this fanfiction I will use the method I used in this chapter. Enjoy!_

_**Ciel Phantomhive**_

**Chapter 2**

Ciel was looking outside at the freshly fallen snow, which was covering the British countryside with a white blanket of refined white powder. It was quite the sight, Ciel had to admit.

'_Bocchan_, there's someone at the door,' Sebastian said. Ciel looked away from the window.

'Who is it?' he asked.

'It's mister Randall from Scotland Yard.' Ciel was surprised.

'Did we phone them, or are they here for no reason?'

'He wishes to talk to you, Young Master.'

'Is it urgent?'

'It looked quite urgent, my lord.' Ciel sighed and got up. Those people from Scotland Yard were completely useless. Ciel could solve those mysteries himself. Well, with the help of Sebastian, at least. Ciel exited his highly decorated office, the sound of his cane on the floor dimmed by the carpet as he was on his way to the hall.

**/\/\/\/\**

Fred Abberline was a man in a dark-grey trench coat and green tie. His auburn hair and blue eyes picked from under his snow-covered bowler hat. He was standing at the bottom of the stairs, together with Arthur Randall. Arthur was a man with brown eyes, square glasses, a moustache, sideburns and a black top hat. They were talking to each other on muted tone, but they quickly shut up as soon as they saw the earl. Ciel and Sebastian descended the stairs. Ciel observed them. They looked like they were either very uncomfortable or in a hurry. Abberline was tapping with his foot on the floor and Randall's right eye was twitching a little.

'Earl Phantomhive,' Arthur said.

'Sir Arthur Randall,' Ciel stated. 'Why are you here?'

'Haven't you heard it yet?' Abberline asked, astonished. 'Two murders found place.'

'And?' Two murders, is that all? Ciel thought. That wasn't that weird in the Underworld.

'Two murders,' Randall said, 'that involve you, Earl.'

'What?' Ciel was struck dumb. What had happened? Was Elizabeth okay?

'A couple of weeks earlier, one of your guests was murdered six days after he had left you mansion. And now, another one of your guests has been murdered six days after she had left your mansion.' Ciel was silent. How could it be that he had not heard about this earlier? Had Sebastian known about this?

'Sir Randall and mister Abberline,' Ciel said, and he smiled, 'will you please follow me to my office? If we discuss everything out here, some…unwanted eavesdroppers might hear certain facts.' Randall growled. Ciel interpreted that as an agreement. 'Sebastian, prepare tea for three people. And bring two extra chairs to my office. Oh, don't forget to make sure Soma and Agni are satisfied.'

'Yes, my lord.'

**/\/\/\/\**

'Is there…a connection between the victims?' Abberline asked. Ciel thought. The first victim, Warren Bloom, had been the deputy of the Funtom company in France for a while. He had visited the earl one last time before retiring. It sure was a pity he had died. The second victim, Vena Oxley, was a…friend of Ran Mao. Lau had been in need of a place for her to stay, so Ciel had offered his help. There was nothing special to mention about both of the guests. He told Randall and Abberline about the visits.

'Vena left with a carriage later that day. There is nothing special to mention about both of their visits.' Randall had a difficult expression on his face.

'Your story is impermeable, Earl,' he said after a while. 'And I can't imagine why you would want to kill a friend of your friend or someone from your own company.'

'Would you mind if we examine the rooms where the victims slept?' Abberline asked.

'No, go ahead, if you want,' Ciel said. 'Sebastian, lead them to the rooms of the victims.'

'Yes, my lord.'

**/\/\/\/\**

'Have you found anything?' Ciel asked Abberline after the examination of the rooms.

'Nothing,' Abberline said. 'They haven't left anything behind, unintentionally nor premeditated. We should go now. If you find anything special, please contact us, Earl Phantomhive.'

'I will,' Ciel said. 'Have a good trip back to London.'

'Thank you, Earl,' Randall said. 'It sure is cold outside, and slippery. Watch out if you go outside!'

'I will, thank you,' Ciel said. He turned around and went back to his office as Sebastian escorted Randall and Abberline outside.

We can't have this, Ciel thought. This will ruin our good name. If I leave this to those morons of Scotland Yard, word will spread and everything will be over. I think I should…undertake some action myself.

**/\/\/\/\**

The Undertaker's shop appeared to be empty, as usual. It was even darker than usual and only two candles were lit.

'Undertaker!' Ciel called his name. His voice sounded harsh in the black, box-like room they were in.

'Hihihi, Earl,' Undertaker's voice said as the coffin in the corner opened. 'You caught me in the middle of a nap. Would you like to try out a coffin? Or are you here for a measuring cup of tea?'

'Neither of those things, Undertaker,' Ciel said. Undertaker glanced at the hourglass on one of the coffins.

'Ah! Time for biscuits!' he said and disappeared behind some other coffins. Ciel sniffed. He could indeed smell something else, apart from the accustomed stale air and the slight whiff of rotting flesh. Undertaker appeared behind him, wearing pink oven gloves and carrying a griddle (that had definitely seen better days). He offered the Earl a biscuit.

'Watch out, Earl! They're still hot, you don't want to burn your mouth!' Ciel carefully nibbled a biscuit. It was a little dry, but not bad at all.

'So,' Undertaker said, as he sat down on one of the coffins and putting some cookies in an urn, 'are you very sure you don't want a measuring cup of tea?'

'I wanted to know,' Ciel said, 'if you know anything about Warren Bloom and Vena Oxley.'

'Do I know anything about them?' Undertaker asked himself. 'You know what the price for my information is, Earl.'

'O gosh,' Ciel sighed. 'Sebastian!'

'Yes, _Bocchan_?' Sebastian said behind him.

'Make Undertaker laugh,' Ciel ordered.

'Please wait outside, my lord.' Sebastian asked Ciel. 'And under no circumstances you are to peek inside!' Ciel went outside, the snow scrunching under his high heels. It was incredibly cold, and he was shivering as the booming laugh of the Undertaker echoed in the street. Sebastian opened the door.

'Please come inside, Young Master,' he said with a smile on his face. Ciel entered the shop and the Undertaker was giggling in the corner, muttering something that looked an awful lot like: "kitties".

**/\/\/\/\**

'The victims have been pierced with an enormous strength,' Undertaker said, petting his fake upper body. 'It was a tough job to make them pretty for their funeral, but I managed to do it. The wound was straight through the heart. The strength they were penetrated with was definitely inhuman. That's all there is to say.' Ciel frowned. That was interesting. So there was either another _akuma_ out there, or one of Finny's friends, or maybe even a _Shinigami_. What now? Sebastian could probably make Grell do some _Shinigami_ tricks to find out whether it was a _Shinigami_ or not, but why would an inhuman being kill those people? Ciel didn't know.

'Let's go home, Sebastian,' he said.

_Was it a bit rushed? I know it's not the best chapter. But I find it quite hard to write as Ciel, he is a very cunning and complex character. Please tell me what you think of this story so far! I'm going to try and upload another chapter today. Oh, by the way, when I write fanfictions, I first write the whole thing, and then upload it chapter by chapter. So after this fanfiction I'll have to write another one, and so it will probably take a while for me to upload another fanfiction after this one. But I might do a one shot, or even a sickfic. Yeah, I'm one of those people who enjoys reading and writing about misery and such. You'll see that in the next chapter… (don't like, don't read, you have been warned, I mean, the second genre is Hurt/Comfort, what were you expecting?)_


	4. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, but I do own the OC's in this story._

_Warning: There will be a little bit of Hurt/Comfort in this chapter. Well, not really Comfort, more Hurt. Don't like it, don't read it. You have been warned. It's nothing serious though (we'll get to that in a couple of chapters…), but now I have warned you, at least. I'll try to upload one chapter every day, but I've got a test week and there are a couple of hard tests coming up. After that I'll have more time to write. Oh, and there will be some bonus chapters, but they won't be in the same Story, because then I'll have to change the rating because of some silly tiny chapters (yes… probably going to have to rate it M…). So I'll make probably make another story with the bonus chapters. Enjoy!_

_**Sebastian Michaelis**_

**Chapter 3**

'My, my, _Bocchan_,' Sebastian said, as he was kneeling next to Ciel. 'You should be more careful.' Ciel had just slipped because of the snow and ice that had been pressurized by all the carriages and people coming to the Phantomhive manor. 'You might get injured like this.'

'Shut up and help me already,' Ciel said as he tried to get up. He groaned.

'_Bocchan_, are you okay?' Sebastian asked concerned and grabbed Ciel's shoulder.

'I'm fine,' Ciel murmured. He got up with the help of Sebastian, but nearly immediately fell down again. Sebastian caught him just in time.

'Bocchan!' he said, now getting worried.

'Just help me inside, will you?' Ciel snapped. Sebastian lifted him up, princess style. Despite all the Young Master's complaints about just supporting him inside instead of carrying him like a little girl, he just portaged him up the stairs, through the heavy oak wooden doors, through the hall, to the nearest lounge. He didn't know that Agni and Soma were in that lounge, as well.

As they entered the room, Soma stood up from his chair. 'Ciel!' he shouted, with a smile on his face, although that smile vanished like frost under the morning sun when he saw that Sebastian was carrying Ciel.

'What happened?' Agni asked, and walked towards them.

'Nothing,' Ciel said. 'I just fell.'

'Are you okay?' Soma asked anxiously. Sebastian laid Ciel on the sofa.

'We don't know,' Sebastian said. The Young Master was moving his right leg differently, so Sebastian was almost entirely sure that he had injured that leg in his fall.

'My lord, where does it hurt?' Sebastian asked. He was getting quite worried, to be honest. It was very unlike _Bocchan_ to complain about pain, unless it was quite severe.

'My right ankle,' Ciel said. Sebastian carefully examined his ankle. Ciel inaudibly groaned of pain.

'Do you mind if I take your shoe off, or is that too painful?'

'Do whatever springs to your mind, but try to do it carefully.'

'I'll try to be as gentle as possible, my lord.' Sebastian took off his master's right shoe and sock cautiously. Ciel's right ankle was swollen and bruised. Definitely sprained.

'Do you need help?' Soma asked.

'If you could bring me some ice, that would definitely be helpful,' Sebastian responded.

'What kind of ice?' Agni asked.

'Ice from outside,' Sebastian said. 'About the size of your hand, if possible. Put it in a towel, like a package. Understood?'

'Yes, Sebastian!' Agni left the lounge. Five minutes later, he came back with the ice. Sebastian received the ice from him, and gave it to the Young Master.

'Please press this against your ankle, _Bocchan_. It should reduce the swelling and the pain,' Sebastian said. 'I'm going to call a doctor. Agni, could you please watch over the Young Master for a moment?'

'Yes, of course.'

'If there's anything else we can do, just tell us, okay?' Soma said.

**/\/\/\/\**

Ciel sighed. He was lying in his bed, his right foot bandaged and elevated with a pillow. Sebastian was in the bedroom as well. He was serving Earl Grey tea and fruit macaroons.

'You should watch your steps better next time, _Bocchan_,' Sebastian said. 'You could have fractured it.'

'I don't need your comments, Sebastian,' Ciel said. 'It's bad enough to be stuck here now. I won't be able to walk for at least a week.'

'Probably longer, my lord,' Sebastian said. 'Ankle sprains sometimes take months to recover. If you don't rest properly, it might be permanent.'

Ciel sighed. 'Make sure lady Elizabeth doesn't come over for a while,' he said.

'Ah, _Bocchan_, do you not want your fiancé to see you like this?' Sebastian commented, teasing his master a little, wanting to see his reaction. Ciel blushed.

'No, I just don't want her to be dead six days after visiting my manor,' Ciel contradicted. 'Tell her I've got a contagious illness or something in that direction, nothing serious, though. She'll go nuts if she hears that I'm injured. Just make sure that she won't visit the mansion.'

'Yes, my lord,' Sebastian said.

Ciel nipped his tea in silence. After a while he said: 'Bring Agni and Soma in.'

'As you wish,' Sebastian said. He was starting to find this whole matter quite interesting. Wondering how his master was going to solve this concern, he went downstairs, to the lounge where he had last seen Agni and Soma. They were still there, but they weren't alone.

'There he is, Ran-mao,' Lau said and pointed at Sebastian. Sebastian resisted the urge to raise his eyebrows. He first had to carry out his master's order. He would inform him about Lau's presence later.

'Agni, Soma, the Young Master would like to speak with you,' Sebastian said, ignoring the presence of Lau and Ran-mao. 'If you could please to follow me for a second.'

**/\/\/\/\**

'How many times do I have to explain this to you before you understand?!' Ciel said. 'I'd like you to follow this man. Duncan Cratchit is the head of a small company that would like to do business with the Funtom company. I am not truly interested in his business, but he does have the potential of becoming a big man someday. So, if he happens to survive, that would be positive, but if he dies it's not that important.'

'For six days?' Soma asked.

'Yes. I think Agni will be more than capable of satisfying the two of you for six days in London. This is important, the reputation of the Phantomhive family is at stake. Keep an eye on him, but make sure he doesn't see you.'

'And what does this have to do with us?' Agni asked.

Ciel sighed. 'You said that if there is anything else you can do, I should tell you. Well, this is what you can do right now to help me, now that I can't do it myself. It is essential for the Phantomhive household, and you would really help me more by doing this than by sitting next to me all day, just so that I would have someone to talk to.'

'I…think I understand,' Soma said. Ciel looked up at the ceiling, making a hand gesture that screamed "_Thank_ _you_!"

'Well then, when are we supposed to leave?' Agni asked.

'Duncan will visit the mansion tomorrow and will stay for about 24 hours,' Ciel answered. 'You must leave at around the same time as him. Sebastian will keep an eye on him as long as he's still in the mansion. I would recommend packing lightly, because you probably won't be able to drop off your belongings at a safe place all the time. You can leave the stuff you don't need here in the mansion for now.'

'Well, then I guess I'll start packing now,' Agni said.

'I will help you,' Sebastian said. Together they left the Earl's bedroom. Sebastian found it funny how the Young Master had solved his problem. It probably would have been wiser to leave this job to the Undertaker or even to Lau, but that would mean he had to bring them over here to make sure that his message wouldn't be intercepted, and to make sure that word would not spread. And Lau, since he had just arrived here, would be killed within six days after leaving the manor. So they would have to stay. Sebastian sighed. More work. Soma, who had been here for many weeks, even months now, had arrived before the first murder had taken place, and so the killer probably didn't know about the presence of Soma and Agni. Apart from that, Sebastian had faith in Agni. He was, well, one hell of a human, he supposed. Sebastian smirked as they walked towards the guest rooms were Soma and Agni were staying.

_Was it too rushed again? I don't know… It doesn't beat Chapter 1, but PLEASE tell me your opinion! Thank you for all the views. Next chapter coming up as soon as possible. Oh, and I've been brainstorming about other Kuroshitsuji fanfictions as well, so there will definitely be more very soon!_


	5. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, but I do own the OC's in this story._

_Sorry guys for uploading this late. It is still today, though! My tests went pretty well today, let's pray tomorrow will be just as good. Oh, I have Latin…wish Sebastian was there during the test next to me whispering all the right answers about the superlativus… So, another chapter! Quite a short one… more of a connection chapter. But Chapter 5 is quite good, in my opinion. But then again, I'm a little prejudiced, aren't I? Oh well, at the end of this chapter I'll ramble a bit more. Enjoy!_

_**William T. Spears**_

**Chapter 4**

If he had been mortal, William was sure that he would have been bored to death. Literally. It was so boring at the infirmary. Not that William's normal life was that interesting, with all the paperwork, but he certainly missed the fieldwork. But it would take a while before he would be back on his feet again, since he could barely sit up without nearly fainting of pain, and he still had to rest a lot.

Of course, Clive was there sometimes. Almost every day he found a moment to visit William, sometimes during his lunch break, sometimes even past his working hours. He was about the only thing that kept him from not trying to break out, since it was difficult to hold a book while lying on your back with only one arm without the book falling in your face every ten seconds. Clive was holding him up to date about everything that was going on at the office. He sometimes reported quite interesting stories. For example, Grell had been sent to investigate the incident with Terrence, and instead of reporting his to the General Affairs immediately, he had spent time drinking a measuring cup of tea with Undertaker, whilst chatting about corpses.

Today, Clive came during his lunch break. He seemed quite exhausted and had bags under his eyes. He sighed as he sat down next to William's bed.

'What's wrong?' William asked.

'Oh,' Clive said, 'just a little tired. I didn't know your job was so hard! We're understaffed as well, seems like everyone is getting sick. Well, it is the season, but it's certainly not helping me!'

'You have to do your own duties next to doing my job, so that's understandable,' William said. 'But Clive, don't overdo it, okay?' It felt weird for him to say, but he couldn't miss Clive, because if he was at home, overworked and ill, someone else had to do the job. And, apart from Clive, there was no one who could do it, to be honest. Not even for all the tea in China would he allow Grell to lead the department.

'So far, I've sent Grell off to investigate some more. He did have a lead, and he promised to report everything as soon as possible, also what he saw before drinking tea with the Undertaker. Apart from that, nothing special happened, really. I've been doing paperwork from my last visit until now.' William carefully tried to find a more comfortable position, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his side and shoulder whilst clenching his teeth so that he wouldn't scream because of the burning feeling. He felt worse than the day before, but the doctor said that was because the wounds were healing. "Things have to get worse before they can get better" was what the doctor had said. William would rather not get any worse than this, if he was honest.

'William, just stay still,' Clive said with a concerned tone in his voice. 'You can obviously see it hurts. Let me help you.' Clive slightly fluffed his pillow and pulled the mattress cover. That crease in the fabric that had been bothering William for a while disappeared. He sighed in slight relief.

'Thank you,' William said. 'That's much better.' Now that he was in a more pleasant position, William could feel his eyelids growing heavier.

'No problem, mate,' Clive said. 'I just want to get you back on your feet as fast as possible.' William couldn't think of a proper reaction because of his sleepiness, so he just remained silent. Clive checked his pocket watch.

'Oh goodness,' he said. 'Is it this late already? I have to go. Nice chat. So long, William!' He ran off. William barely saw it before closing his eyes, the pain toning down to a dull sting.

**/\/\/\/\**

William was sitting up, reading the book that was on his upper legs, his right arm in a sling, the top of his white hospital pyjamas visible above the blanket. The doctor had been right after all, he was feeling much better, compared to two days ago, because back then he had had trouble moving and sitting up, and now William could sit up by himself easily, and he even stood this morning. It was about lunchtime, and Clive would probably arrive soon. He was just thinking about that, when he heard footsteps coming his way. Clive's bright orange hair appeared to be burning in the sunlight as he was walking towards William.

'You look better,' Clive remarked with a smile on his face.

'At least a lot better than two days ago,' William said, putting his book on the nightstand. 'Any updates?'

'Nothing,' Clive said. 'The murderer hasn't been caught yet. Apart from that there is nothing special to mention. Well, there is one thing that might be worth discussing. It's about…'

'Mister Goody!' Ronald Knox yelled as he ran towards him in panic. William could immediately tell that something was wrong.

'Ronald, what's wrong,' Clive said, standing up to pick up Ronald, who was panting heavily after his run. Apparently he was in a hurry.

'Iwaslookin'inyouroficeandI…' Ronald panted, 'couldn'tfindyouandtheytoldmeyouwereheresoIranandyou'rehereand…'

'Ronald!' Clive interrupted him, grabbing Ronald by the shoulders and looking him in the eye. 'Calm down! What's wrong!'

'Sir, one of the spare Death Scythes has been stolen!' Ronald said, looking up at Clive.

'What?!' William said. The _Shinigami_ _Haken_ _Kyoukai_ had spare Death Scythes for people to use temporarily during punishment. The scissors of mister Sutcliff were an example. 'How did that happen?'

'I don't know,' Ronald told William. 'I entered the department and there was a lot of fuss and all they told me was that one of the daggers in the storage was missin'. I had to tell the head of the department, so I ran to the main office, but I couldn't find mister Goody, and one of the secretaries told me you had just left to visit you in the hospital wing.' Ronald glanced at mister Goody. He shook his head.

'I'm afraid this will have to be a short visit, William,' Clive said. 'Mister Knox and I will have to sort this out. I will probably see you tomorrow.' Clive left, Ronald running after him. William wished he could follow them. This was a serious problem, something like this had never occurred before. But he would have to trust them on this one, simply because he couldn't help. So, after finishing his book later that day, he was once again sure that he would have died of boredom if he had been mortal.

_So, this was it for today. Studying, yay… Well, first of all, I've got a lot of ideas for other Kuroshitsuji fanfics. I'll definitely do something like this again, but first I've got a couple of other projects I want to start off with and maybe even finish before starting another one of these "murder cases". I do really enjoy writing these, though. Oh, and I've found an old fanfiction I had written just after the prologue of this one. It was around Christmas 2014 (sounds so long ago already0.0), so it's…well, a half-finished Black Butler Christmas special. Do you want me to finish and upload it? (I'll have a lot of fun making the cover, that's for sure).Please tell me! More news, completely random, I'M SO EXCITED FOR THE ELFIA FANTASY FAIR HAARZUIJLENS 2015! It's a Dutch Fantasy Fair. I've only been there once so far, but I absolutely loved it! My life is pretty expensive nowadays…because, well, LARP and Cosplay… Elfia isn't a special anime fair, but there are anime cosplayers there as well and I hope there will be some fellow Black Butler cosplayers. Is there anyone out there who's reading this and is coming as well? Whoa this is one hell of an extremely long author's note… Please tell me what you think of the story so far! Thank you for so many views! I'll try to upload another part as soon as possible, most likely tomorrow somewhere in the afternoon or so! So long! Exclamation marks! Randomness! Bye!;D (wow was I on drugs while writing this or something…just ignore it.)_


	6. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji._

_Claimer: I do own the plot and the OC's._

_I'M SOO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING SOONER! I am not even going to try and give you guys a reason, cause I don't have one, really. Yes, my extreme laziness. All I had to do was upload one little chapter. Me: meh bored *puts on music again*. (at least test week is over…but my teachers have already planned more tests, projects, homework and more things that will keep me from writing D; )_

_Sorry, guys. Well, so this chapter will be about our furious passionate red reaper. I've already told you the chapters of this fanfic follow the thoughts of one person. And Grell refers to herself as a woman. You'll see what I mean by that. Enjoy!_

_**Grell Sutcliff**_

**Chapter 4**

Grell's heart was burning with the desire to jump on Sebastian from behind. She was following the butler inside the Phantomhive mansion. His brat had called him inside and Grell simply followed, whilst holding the little ginger kitty. The black butler didn't seem to have anything against it. Grell found herself the luckiest maiden in the world. What began as a stupid assignment, ended up in her advantage. The soul William and Terry had been after was the one of a certain Vena Oxley. First Grell had visited the Undertaker to gather information about the victim. Undertaker had offered her a cup of tea, which she gladly accepted. After that she had to read all those boring documents about that Vena Oxley lady. Her soul had not been reaped so Grell had to watch the Cinematic Records of her family. But apparently miss Oxley hadn't had any contact with her family for at least a year. So she moved on to her friends. Most of her friends were still alive, though, so it took a lot of time to read all those half-finished Cinematic Records. Eventually she found out that Vena had recently visited the Phantomhive mansion. That had alerted Grell. It was quite odd that an ordinary lady like Vena had ended up at the Phantomhives, especially since nobody had ever spoken of any connection between her and the Earl in their Records before. So Grell had decided to do some more "field work", and by that, she meant investigating. She had come across a kitty in a tree on her way to the Phantomhives, so she had decided to take the little cat with her. At the mansion Sebastian had first tried to kill her and after that he had offered her a cup of Earl Grey. She had already proven herself lucky with that offer, and now she had even more time with her Sebby. Oh, this was going to be great!

**/\/\/\/\**

Neither of them spoke as they made their way through the large mansion. They entered the Earl's office. The first thing Grell saw was that Lau was standing in the corner, watching the scene in front of him. He looked quite amused. Ciel himself was sitting in the chair behind his desk, with to people standing in front of him. One of them had a turban and one of his hands was packed in slim bandages. The other was a little bit smaller, he was more of a boy, really. He had purple hair which was in a loose ponytail at the back of his head. Both were wearing quite strange clothes, as if they were from a different country. They were both looking at their feet uncomfortably, and seemed quite embarrassed. Ciel, on the other hand, was looking at them in a way that was nearly frightening. Grell could swear that she saw his eye twitch.

'Ah,' Sebastian said. 'I see our…colleagues have returned.' Suddenly Sebastian was standing behind Ciel. Grell didn't know how he managed to do that, she only knew that, in her opinion, it made Sebastian even hotter. Mostly because he was busy with his master right now, and Grell would have all the time of the world to properly check him out.

'So,' Ciel said, almost completely concealing the anger in his voice, 'what you're trying to say, is that you haven't caught our…culprit, because of some curry…'

'Looks like it would have been better to leave this to me instead of them, in the end,' Lau commented, smirking a little.

'Young master,' Sebastian began, but he was suddenly interrupted by the boy with the purple hair.

'I'M SO SORRY, CIEL! I RUINED EVERYTHING!' he cried. Tears were rolling down his cheeks and he was grasping his hair as he fell to his knees while crying.

'_Bocchan_,' Sebastian said, but he was interrupted again by the man with the turban.

'OH MASTER, YOU HAVE SUCH A KIND HEART, APOLOGIZING TO THE EARL!' he cried and hugged the boy with the purple hair from behind. Within a second, the two were whining in each other's arms.

'ENOUGH!' Ciel shouted, interrupting the weeping men. 'Soma, I demand an explanation.' Ciel was now radiating pure anger.

'Well,' the boy with the purple hair, which Grell assumed was Soma, said, 'we were following the man you wanted us to follow. We had already followed him for six days, and nothing special had happened, really. We even looked through his paperwork, as you asked. He was a regular man. And so on the sixth evening, I was quite hungry. It was about eleven o'clock, and I hadn't eaten curry for a while. I thought we could leave mister Cratchit for a while. So Agni prepared me some curry in an alleyway, and we came across some beggars, so we decided to help them. We left him for about forty minutes, and when we came back…he was lying dead in an alleyway.'

'We tried our best,' the other man said, which was probably Agni. 'We knew his planning for the day, but his visit to the alleyway wasn't scheduled. I guess nobody would plan their death, but to just randomly walk into an alleyway…it sure is strange.'

Ciel sighed and made a shoo-gesture with his hand. 'Go find yourself something to do. I'll contact you if I need you to…help me again.' Soma and Agni left the room, quiet and ashamed. Then Ciel seemed to notice Grell. Grell waved. She didn't get a response. Instead Ciel gestured that Sebastian had to bend over. He whispered something in his ear. It was quite the monologue, and when Ciel had finished, Sebastian had a smirk on his face. Grell didn't know what was about to happen, but she liked it already.

'Master Sutcliff,' Sebastian said. Grell woke up from her pleasant daydreams about Sebastian, not expecting him to call her name in a situation like this. Unless they wanted her to leave. But that was not Sebastian's intention. 'Can you please follow me?'

**/\/\/\/\**

Grell felt absolutely gorgeous in her passionate, dark red dress. It was a longer gown, off-shoulder with a ribbon at the back, and a lot of underskirts. She was still wearing her coat, though. Together with her red high heels and red gloves, the actress was ready for her performance. Her long red hair was tied together in an elegant knot. Grell was really excited for this part. Not only because it involved her dress, but also because Sebastian had something to do with it. Mostly because Sebastian had something to do with it.

'You're alias will be Gwen Sullivan,' Sebastian explained her once more. Grell already knew what she had to do, but that didn't mean she didn't like hearing the voice of the tall, handsome butler. Sebastian had explained it at least four times, apparently his brat had ordered him to make everything as clear as possible. 'You will be wandering through London for six days, we've already arranged everything. You have to act like a noble would.'

'I know how to play my part, Sebby-chan, darling,' Grell said, 'and no matter how much I love to hear your voice, I don't need acting lessons from you.'

All of a sudden a short memory flashed through her head.

"'If you have found the beast we're looking for, immediately call for extra forces. You won't survive a fight with that thing on your own,' Clive said, looking her in the eye strictly. Grell had simply nodded and promised that she would call the office once she had found the culprit."

Grell debated with herself. Was it necessary to call the office, or not? Ah well, Grell thought, Sebastian will be there to save me if necessary, I really don't have to give Clive's secretary more work!

'Very well,' Sebastian said, returning Grell to the real world. 'On the sixth day, we will be following you. You have to ignore us, because you are a regular mortal…woman, and you shouldn't be able to see us.'

'Ah, but Sebasu-chan, then please sit somewhere where I can look at you without it looking strange! Otherwise I won't be able to persist!' Grell, who had been sitting on a chair in the dressing room, suddenly jumped up and charged towards Sebastian. She wanted him, she wanted his skin on hers, she needed the love. One passionate kiss…one hot night…was all she desired. For now.

Sebastian simply stepped aside, making Grell crash into the wardrobe, which nearly ruined her perfect hair.

'My, my,' Sebastian commented. 'That wasn't very ladylike. Are you sure you don't need acting lessons?'

**/\/\/\/\**

Grell was sitting in a carriage. It was the sixth day and near midnight. Sebasu-chan had arranged that she would be riding with a carriage through London for the whole evening of the sixth day. Sebastian and Ciel were following her like a shadow. She had seen them a couple of times that day, although they were hiding pretty well, and, only because she was a Shinigami, she could sometimes see a pair of red or blue eyes staring at her. The red ones made her heart beat faster every time she saw them. It had been extremely hard for her to persist, but she had managed to remain Gwen Sullivan.

The carriage stopped. Grell stepped out of the carriage.

'Why have we stopped?' she asked. The driver was not sitting where he was supposed to sit. He was inspecting the wheel. The horses in front of the carriage were tapping with their hooves on the pavers nervously.

'The wheel broke,' the driver said. 'One of the beams is off. We can't go on until I fix this. We should be able to ride again in about ten minutes. I'm very sorry, my lady.'

'It is fine,' Grell said, while she turned around to enter the carriage again, but her eyes fell on a pair of red eyes in an alleyway. It must be Sebastian, she thought. He should really hide himself better. Even a regular mortal can see him like this.

Then she got an idea. 'I am a regular mortal,' Grell whispered. She closed the door of the carriage without entering, and walked towards the eyes. Gwen should be able to see this, Grell thought, and who wouldn't want to find out to which handsome man those eyes belong? At first she walked slowly, watching her steps so that she wouldn't stumble over her dress, but eventually Grell charged towards the red eyes, right into the dark alleyway. Though she realized that it wasn't Sebastian that was standing in front of her, when it was already too late to turn back.

_I know I am mean, leaving you all on a cliffhanger. And I don't know when I will be uploading the next chapter either! I must be the worst fanfiction updater in the whole world. I rewrote this part as well, because it wasn't very clear what had happened in between the time that we last saw Grell in the first chapter with Ronald and this point, which is actually supposed to happen just after the prologue;). Confusing, I know. So now Grell knows about the existence of Soma and Agni. Did he know about them before? I don't know. I don't remember them meeting, at least. Not that it really matters. I hope it will be a little easier to understand how the Shinigami and the Phantomhives "teamed up". Basically Grell chasing after Sebby again. I know, I'm horribly disappointed, too. You'll see what happens in the next chapter. Please tell me how horrible I am by doing all this to you guys! You'll probably hate the next chapter. It's more Hurt in the next one, by the way. Is to be expected, really, after an ending like this one. Oh, and I've got a lot of inspiration for other Black Butler fanfictions as well, so those will be written and uploaded as soon as possible! I'm going to bed now… so tired, I first had to make a test at school and after that I had some kind of special sports day. And, to cap it all, my mom decided to take me shopping afterwards. It's now nearly 10PM over here, and normally I wouldn't be so tired this early, but now I'm completely dead right now. Please tell me what you think of this fanfic so far! Look forward to the next chapter although it will probably be horrible! Thank you so much for all the views!_


	7. Chapter 6

_Hi! Sorry for not updating yesterday (again…). It's just, school…*frustration*. I've got an idea for a one shot! I don't know if it'll work out, and it's only a small production of my brainwashed mind, but hopefully it'll come together just fine and I'll be able to upload it as soon as possible. It'll more be like a Black Crack thing than a serious story, though._

_So, this chapter contains some more Hurt, you have been warned, don't like, don't read. Please give me your opinion after reading this chapter. Enjoy!_

_**Ciel Phantomhive**_

**Chapter 5**

Sebastian had been carrying Ciel around all day long. Ciel's ankle had not healed completely yet, and, even without a sprained ankle, Ciel couldn't have possibly kept up with Sebastian. That was the reason why Ciel had had a piggy ride on Sebastian's back almost all day. Nothing special had happened, until now. They were standing in a dark alleyway. Trash was spread over the stones, and a box, that probably belonged to a beggar, because there were a couple of blankets inside, was lying on its side.

Sebastian put him down and peeked around the corner. 'Now, Young Master, I can feel that our culprit is very close,' he whispered almost inaudibly.

'What about Grell?' Ciel asked on the same volume.

'Now charging towards the alleyway. Towards the suspect, to be exactly. We will enter the scene as soon as mister Sutcliff is being…interrupted by the murderer.'

'How do we know when he's…interrupted?'

'I can hear them talk, I know exactly when to pop up.' Of course Sebastian could hear them. A butler who couldn't hear people over such a distance wasn't worth his salt, he'd say.

'And now,' Ciel said, 'we must wait.'

**/\/\/\/\**

'My, my,' Sebastian said. 'Now it gets interesting.' Ciel, who had been nid-nodding on the pavers, suddenly looked up. He was dressed as a regular citizen, not a nobleman, so getting his clothes dirty wouldn't be a problem. Not that he cared about his clothes, anyway.

'What are they saying?' Ciel asked.

'He is inquiring about madam Red,' Sebastian said. 'Grell pretends like he doesn't know, and…oh!' Sebastian gasped.

'What is it?' Ciel asked. 'It's not a cat, is it? Sebastian! Tell me what's going on!'

'_Bocchan_, come on, we must hurry!' Sebastian said. He picked Ciel up and ran towards Grell and the murderer. The wind was howling in his ears and Ciel was pressed against Sebastian's chest as Sebastian carried Ciel in his arms while running at top-speed. Within seconds they were standing next to Grell, who was pressing himself against the wall. The man in front of him didn't seem very dangerous. He was about forty-five years old, and wore the clothes of a nobleman. His hair was getting grey and he seemed to be unarmed. But Ciel skipped a heartbeat as he saw two glowing red eyes appear next to him, soon followed by the silhouette of a woman.

'What…' Ciel said, looking at Grell for answers. Grell shrugged.

'Ah,' the male said. His voice was very low and had a kind tone. 'I see you have brought some friends. Let me introduce myself. My name is Rowland Doubleday.' Sebastian put Ciel down. Rowland turned and looked at the silhouette of the woman next to him. 'Come on! Don't be shy! Introduce yourself!' The woman stepped out of the shadows. Wow.

She had gorgeous red hair, lighter than Grell, with a little shade of orange once in a while, like a campfire. It ended just below her shoulder blades and was cut in layers. She was wearing a black dress with a simple design, that reached to just below her knees, tights, black gloves, low-heeled shoes and a…dagger? Ciel was quite sure she was holding a dagger. Her face was beautiful, with a small nose and perfectly shaped lips, her skin was flawless. She wasn't very tall, but still very elegant and slim. Though her eyes revealed the truth. They were red. Just like Sebastian's.

'Amymone Kerrigan,' she said and bowed. Her voice was very clear and full, though quite high.

'May I ask,' Ciel said, 'what you are doing here?'

'Ah,' Rowland said. 'We were just chatting to this lovely lady, Gwen. I believe the two of you have met before, or am I wrong, Earl?' Of course the man would recognize him, all the victims had been to Ciel's mansion. That was the reason why they had been killed.

'You've done all this, haven't you?' Ciel said. 'Warren, Vena, Duncan… Why?'

'Ah,' Amymone said. 'I'm afraid you're forgetting about someone. Am I allowed to explain?' This question was meant for mister Doubleday.

'Do as you please,' he said. 'I might fill you in on some details, though.'

'Well, my master wished to form a contract,' Amymone began. 'He wanted the murderer of Madam Red to be killed and you to suffer the death of someone who is precious to you. You see, my master was a good friend of Madam Red. She had treated him in the hospital and ever since that moment, they were nearly inseparable. Master Doubleday was absolutely crushed by the enormous loss of Angelina. He saw you on the funeral and found you very interesting. So he started to investigate.'

'I used to be a private soldier, just like you,' Rowland said. 'But instead of working for the Queen, I had my own business. People could hire me for cases. One of the cases got me into the hospital, where I met Angelina. I quit that job after that case and started working at a publisher, but I grabbed the opportunity to investigate once more after Angelina's death.'

'My master found out that you had been there that night. The thought drove him crazy. "You were there in her last moments", he often said. "You could have stopped the killer. Why did you survive? Why is she in a coffin and are you still breathing?" were questions he frequently asked himself. It tortured him. He couldn't take it anymore and summoned me. He formed a contract and formulated his wish. "I wish to find Angelina Dalles' killer and I wish for Ciel Phantomhive to suffer the loss I have suffered until we find him!"' Rowland looked at his feet nervously. Apparently he wasn't very comfortable with Amymone giving so many details.

'We decided that the only way to make sure that you would suffer loss was to kill your loved ones. We didn't know who to kill, so we killed them all. My master wanted me to remain strong, so I was allowed consume the souls of the victims. The murders had to be scheduled, though; master Doubleday has to work a lot to be able to live. Working at a publisher isn't a very well-paid job. Though it was a coincidence that all the victims were killed six days after leaving the Phantomhive household. Well, mostly, at least. In the meantime, we investigated at the Dalles' household. We weren't very fortunate, though. We haven't found any clues. But it appears we have found our killer.' Amymone looked at Grell's coat, which had previously been Madam Red's.

A thought struck Ciel's mind. Why was Amymone comfortable with telling them so much? Why had they confessed so easily? They would only do that if they were very certain that they wouldn't tell anyone. And there was only one way to make sure that was the case. He looked at Sebastian. He knew that it must have looked a bit desperate.

'Ah,' Amymone said, 'it looks like we have found someone who is very, very dear to you.' She looked at Sebastian. 'This really is a goldmine.' She smiled, a wonderful and kind smile, far too sweet for the situation. 'The contract will end tonight.'

'Amymone,' Rowland ordered, 'kill the butler and make the Earl suffer. Then kill the murderer.'

'Yes, master,' Amymone said and bowed. She reminded Ciel of Sebastian. Were all demons like this? Ciel untied his eye patch. It fell on the ground.

'Sebastian,' he said. 'Kill Rowland Doubleday and Amymone Kerrigan!'

'Yes, my lord.' Sebastian and Amymone both took off their gloves faster than any human could. Within a second, their eyes were glowing pink and red, and they were engaged in a fierce battle.

**/\/\/\/\**

Ciel started to worry. Sebastian was losing. Ciel didn't believe this was possible, but Amymone was slowly getting the upper hand. At first, Sebastian had attempted to harm her, but now he had to focus on defending himself. Amymone's incredibly sharp dagger reflected the moonlight as she tried to stab Sebastian again. Sebastian dodged the dagger just in time and deteriorated towards a wall, where he had to bend so that he wouldn't get hit by Amymone's fist, that now punched the wall instead of Sebastian. In the meantime, Grell was fighting mister Rowland, his chainsaw sparkled as he endeavoured a lethal blow. Rowland simply dodged, making the chainsaw hit the wall. Ciel smirked. The normally so murderous and bloodthirsty _Shinigami_ now couldn't even hit the employee of a publisher.

Ciel could feel Sebastian standing behind him. Ciel turned around and saw that Amymone was busy pulling out a piece of silverware that had pinned her dress to the wall, temporarily slowing her down.

'How is this possible, Sebastian?' Ciel yelled at him. 'You're losing!'

'I am terribly sorry, my lord.' Sebastian panted quite heavily. 'She is about as strong as me, but she isn't starving, because she used the souls of her victims to feed herself. I… Watch out, _Bocchan_!' Sebastian pushed him out of the way as Amymone tried to stab Sebastian again. Her dagger hit the pavers with an impact that would've normally destroyed a dagger. Grell had seen it too and was struck dumb, but in a different way. He stopped attacking Rowland for a moment and yelled: 'How could you rob the office!' and then Ciel realized it wasn't an ordinary dagger. Amymone was wielding a Death Scythe. And she was winning from Sebastian.

'Sebastian!' Ciel said. 'I order you not to die!' He felt that the mark on his eye was getting a little warmer. Ciel was a little bit relieved. Sebastian couldn't ignore such a clear order, could he? Although if he failed…no, that was impossible. He was one hell of a butler.

**/\/\/\/\**

Then that frightful moment came. Amymone jumped, Sebastian retrograded, but not far enough. The dagger pierced his left knee. Sebastian's scream of pain inflated the night, followed by Ciel's cry of fear. Within a couple of seconds, Sebastian's trouser leg was completely drenched with his blood. Amymone was just standing next to him, drinking it all in with a smile of self-satisfaction on her face. Sebastian clenched his teeth and pulled out the dagger and threw it at her. She elegantly stepped out of the way, but she had not realized she was the only obstacle between Sebastian and mister Doubleday. She turned around as she heard his gasp. The dagger had impaled his chest and blood was drenching his clothes. Almost in slow-motion Rowland fell to his knees. Amymone quickly ran towards him, Ciel followed her.

Amymone was stopped by Grell.

'Sorry, darling,' he said, 'but I can't have you eating his soul right now.' Grell stabbed her torso with his chainsaw. Amymone didn't resist. She fell to the ground. Grell turned around and walked towards mister Doubleday to collect his soul. Amymone muttered something on the ground. Ciel walked towards her and kneeled.

'What an odd world we live in,' Amymone whispered. 'Where the light and the dark live next to each other and cruel fates can be prevented.' Ciel was confused. Why was she dying? Was she even dying? Sebastian had survived this kind of thing. If she happened to be dying, Ciel had to get at least one answer.

'Why have you stolen a Death Scythe?' he asked, shaking her shoulders to prevent her from fainting.

'We did find one clue at the Dalles' household,' she spoke. 'Angelina's house wore the unmistakable smell of death. We knew we could encounter a Reaper. We knew we probably had to kill one.' Amymone coughed. Blood. Her breathing (which wasn't even necessary, she was a demon and couldn't die from a lack of air) was getting more and more laboured every second. Ciel was now pretty sure she was dying. 'We had already killed a _Shinigami_ before stealing this Scythe. That other Reaper escaped. It took a lot of effort to kill one _Shinigami_, and if they would decide to team up and attack at once, we'd have a problem if we didn't have a Death Scythe. Sadly, Death Scythes lose their power as soon as their owner dies. We had to rob the _Shinigami_ _Haken_ _Kyoukai_ for an extra Death Scythe.' Amymone sighed. 'How odd. We live in a world were an unbreakable contract can be broken by a starving demon, a _Shinigami_ and a little boy. If this is today's reality, then I wonder how useless this life of mine must have been. I do not wish to live in this world any longer,' she said before closing her eyes and exhaling one last time. Before Ciel could ask anything else, she was gone. Grell kneeled next to her, apparently carefully watching her Cinematic Record. After about one and a half minute he stood up, grabbed his notebook and put some kind of seal with a rubber stamp on one of the pages.

'Rowland Doubleday and Amymone Kerrigan completed,' he said, smiling. Ciel had the feeling that his whole being was nothing but pure confusion. What the hell had just happened? What did she just say? _Shinigami_? But a painful, soft moan behind him made him come to his senses.

Ciel stood up and turned around, slightly limping because his sprained ankle was throbbing again. Sebastian was trying to get up, without any success. Grell was following them from behind.

'Sebastian!' Ciel said concerned. He kneeled next to his butler. Sebastian's face was twisted with pain and he was a little pale, but apart from that, he seemed okay. His eyes were red again. 'Grell, help him!' For once, Grell obeyed.

**/\/\/\/\**

If Ciel was honest, it was a bit grievous to see his "one hell of a butler", the powerful demon he had summoned, limping and leaning on Grell. They had inspected and patched up his knee as good as possible with a piece of Ciel's blouse. Amymone's dagger had completely gone through his knee. It was damaged pretty badly, but it was nothing lethal. Ciel was carrying the dagger as they made their way back to the carriage. His ankle was throbbing but it was probably nothing compared to the pain Sebastian was going through. Ciel sighed. At least the Phantomhive name wasn't ruined. They had succeeded. When they arrived at the carriage, the driver was nowhere to be seen. The Queen's Watchdog smiled as he entered the carriage. Grell put Sebastian on one of the seats, and about ten seconds later they were on their way to the Phantomhive mansion. Ciel saw that Sebastian closed his eyes halfway the trip, drifting off to his own demon dreamland.

'You did well today, Sebastian,' Ciel whispered.

_I know, I'm disappointed, too. I hate it when authors introduce a new villain-character and let him/her die in the exact same chapter. I hope Amymone's death was acceptable, though, like her "choosing to leave this world". I rewrote a bit, because I found it too short at first. __A demon wouldn't die that fast from such a blow._

_In the end, the Shinigami story was more of a side story about the impact of this case on the other Shinigami, especially William and Ronald. The only connection in the end was that Grell more or less solved the case. Please tell me what you think! There are some more chapters coming up (we're not done yet…haven't had the hurt AND comfort part yet…) and they might clear up some things. I personally quite like them, but I'm slightly prejudiced as the author, aren't I? I'll upload the next chapter as soon as possible! Please review!_


	8. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji._

_Claimer: I do own the plot and the OC's. (I forgot this in the last chapter, so this one also counts for chapter 5)_

_Thank you for all the kind reviews! I really appreciate them. I'm working on the one shot, and it's going to be…well, a sickfic. Yes. A sickfic. And the bonus chapters are on their way as well. And I'm brainstorming for two other fanfictions as well. All Kuroshitsuji! *yay* Hope you enjoy!_

_**Ronald Knox**_

**Chapter 7**

The familiar silhouette of William T. Spears walked through the _Shinigami_ _Haken_ _Kyoukai_. He had been doing that for about a century and it wasn't anything special. But today it was.

'Hey, mister Spears! I see they have released you?' Ronald shouted from the other side of the corridor. He started running to catch up on William.

'They have,' William said to Ronald, who was now walking next to him. William's right arm was still in a sling, but apart from that he seemed perfectly fine. 'But that does not give you permission to put the whole office upside down yelling.'

'You certainly are back in business, I see,' Ronald said and smiled. He was glad William was back on his feet. The sight of him in that hospital bed had been horrible. He couldn't imagine how it must've been for Clive.

'Does mister Goody know?' Ronald asked.

'Of course he does,' William said, not even bothering to look at him while talking. 'He has his act together. I can't say that about you, though.' Ronald remained quiet and looked at his feet. William noticed it and sighed.

'You okay, Knox?' he asked after a while and looked him in the eyes. Did Ronald hear a little bit of concern in his voice?

'I'm fine,' Ronald responded. 'It's just that…I've been thinkin' about Terry and what happened a lot. And I have so many answers that can't be answered by anybody but myself.'

'For example?' William said.

'What would have happened if I had been there with the two of you at that moment? Would I have gone with Terry or would I have left with you? Had the three of us been able to stop that filth that killed Terry? Grell told me she was powerful, but…'

'Knox.'

'…she had the Death Scythe, but I know we could have defeated her, since mister Sutcliff pierced her, and she died from that blow, but…'

'Ronald!' William stopped walking, grabbed Ronald's shoulder with his left hand and looked him in his green eyes. Ronald swallowed. 'One question at the time, please.'

'I'm sorry, mister Spears. It's just…I'm so confused. What if I hadn't done the right thing if I had been there?' William sighed and let go of his shoulders.

'Knox,' he said after a while, 'isn't everything we do the right thing for our fate? We both know coincidence is something that rarely arises, if not never. Even if you do something that might not seem right at the time, in the end, it all doesn't matter. It's part of your story, your life, your Cinematic Record. It was meant to be. And we all know what happens if you reject your fate.' Ronald knew that summoning a demon was a form of rejecting your fate. It meant access to heaven was impossible.

'Nothing is endless, I know,' Ronald said. 'But the way you…leave this world…doesn't that matter? I mean, I'd rather die in combat than by fallin' off the stairs.'

'That depends on the person, Knox,' William said. 'The end is inevitable; one day everyone will have to face it. Whatever happens, it was meant to be. All those questions only make it harder. Sometimes all you need to do is let go and have some faith in your fate.' These words were hurting Ronald's confused brain a little. He guessed that was part of the message. 'Anyone that keeps that in mind,' William continued, 'and knows that knowledge isn't always the key, is wise enough to stay true to his or her fate. Remember that, Knox. Now if you would please excuse me, I have an appointment with mister Sutcliff.' William turned around and walked away, leaving behind an extremely confused young _Shinigami_. Ronald still didn't get it. He needed to have faith in his fate? William had attempted to say that he didn't have to know everything to be a happy person? Why was everything always so difficult with mister Spears?

'Knox,' William's voice said. Ronald looked up and saw mister Spears at the end of the corridor, about to enter his office, his gloved hand on the doorknob. 'All I wanted to say was, that I know you would have done the right thing.' He quickly entered his office, not giving the young Reaper a chance to respond. Otherwise Ronald would've made sure he'd never hear the end of it. Although he couldn't deny that a feeling of pride had filled his chest. Ronald smiled as he made his way towards his own office.

_Ah, I love writing Ronald for some reason. He isn't my favourite character, but he's fairly easy to write, in my opinion. So, how did you like this chapter? I hope I didn't overdo William's "soft side". But so there's definitely more hurt/comfort coming up in the future, and also more supernatural and mystery, more Shinigami action, more Akuma action and so much more and I'm so excited cause I love writing! Please tell me what you think! One more chapter coming up, then this story is finished… Love you all! I'll upload as soon as possible! (Oh, and the comfort side of hurt/comfort will be shown in the next chapter a little)_


	9. Chapter 8

_Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji._

_Claimer: I do own the plot and the OC's._

_Thank you all for the views and reviews! For now, this is the last chapter. The bonus chapters and the one shot will be coming soon. I'll definitely write more Black Butler fanfics like these. But this story is completed after this chapter. Slight SebastianxCiel in this chapter, you have been warned. Enjoy!_

_**Sebastian Michaelis**_

**Chapter 8**

Sebastian had asked for a pair of crutches, but his master had ordered Sebastian to stay put for at least two days after the incident. Now, five days after the fight, Sebastian was hobbling through the house on his brand new crutches, doing what he could, which wasn't that much, since he had to hold his crutches, and so he couldn't dress the Young Master or bring food upstairs. All he did was his duty in the butler's room, and anything else he could do sitting. He did cook, with the help of Bard, who was supporting him if there was no countertop to lean on. Apart from that, Tanaka had to do the rest of his job, which also included cleaning up the mess the other servants left. Sebastian felt extremely bad for Tanaka, and he was extremely eager to get back to work again. It was incredibly annoying for him to be that limited, he felt as if he was in a cage, and even though his leg would be completely healed within one to two weeks, for Sebastian it felt as if it was taking an entire century. Although he couldn't deny that he needed to rest. Everyone in the household insisted that he rested a lot and worked as little as possible, and Sebastian couldn't deny that it was a relief to let his painful leg rest after another day of work.

**/\/\/\/\**

Sebastian was reading a book on his bed. It was around 00.30 AM and he needed some way of entertaining himself while those humans were asleep. He could sleep and feel tired, but he simply chose not to. It was pretty chilly in the room, but it didn't really bother Sebastian that much. He was very intrigued by the book he was reading. He really liked the way it was written, although he still found the plot a little dull.

Someone knocked three times. Sebastian quickly put the bookmark between the pages of the book and said: 'Come in!' The person opened the door. It was his Young Master, in his pyjamas. Sebastian grinned at the sight of the little boy in his white night shirt, one hand on the doorknob. It was a moment like this he could really see why he had chosen to serve Ciel. His soul was so dark, so drenched with pure hatred and fury, so cold and yet warm, but it were moments like this when you could see his softer side. The sweet boy from the past had disappeared. But that didn't mean his master didn't know love or kindness. He simply lacked innocence. That was what made him so special for such a young soul.

'My lord, is something wrong?' Sebastian asked.

'Sebastian,' Ciel said, walking towards his bed. 'I've been thinking about what happened a lot. There are some parts about this whole case that are bothering me a little. I need some answers. From a demon.' Ciel sat down in the chair next to his bed.

'Well, I was wondering,' the Earl started, 'why did Amymone die? I mean, you survived a similar blow from Grell.'

'Ah,' Sebastian sighed. He could have seen this question coming. 'She said she didn't want to live in this world, didn't she? Well, she probably just chose not to heal herself in that case. It's as easy as that, and it's the only way I can answer your question until further investigation. A reason for a demon for not wanting to live any longer is being attached to something or someone and then losing it, just like humans. Maybe she was very attached to mister Doubleday. Or it could have been the exact opposite. She hated him so much that she didn't want to see any humans if she could avoid it. I guess we'll never know.' It was quiet once again. Ciel appeared to be debating with himself whether he should ask another question or not. Eventually he decided to interrogate Sebastian a bit more.

'She was stronger…because of the souls she ate,' Ciel said. 'If you would eat souls, would you get stronger?'

'Ah,' Sebastian sighed. 'I wish it was as simple as that. No, let me explain. Some demons drain energy from their souls before eating them. I don't find it very appetizing, it's like sucking your food, spitting it out just to eat it again, and it decreases the taste of the soul. Miss Kerrigan had apparently drained energy from her victims. But it is a temporarily boost and afterwards the energy you used wishes to "recharge" itself and drains your own energy until it's full again. So, in fact, you only borrow the strength and energy of your future self.'

'Ah,' Ciel seemed to understand. 'I didn't know you could do that.'

'I don't wish to, my lord. I find it disgusting.'

'So you don't have to eat souls between now and…the end?' Sebastian realized this was probably a question that had been bothering Ciel ever since the incident, if not earlier.. Sebastian smiled at his master, thinking how incredibly complex his soul was. For someone like him, to care about such a subject…humans could never understand it properly.

Sebastian saw his master shiver. It was getting very cold in the room, and Ciel was only in his thin nightwear. Fast as the one hell of a butler he was, he grabbed Ciel from the chair. Within a second, the cold boy was on his warm chest, in the embrace of the _Akuma_. Ciel didn't struggle, on the contrary; he crawled closer to his butler, enjoying the warmth.

'No, _Bocchan_,' Sebastian responded. 'No, I don't.' Ciel exhaled and Sebastian could feel his warm breath against his chest. His Young Master closed his eyes, and fell asleep in his embrace.

_I hope this was a good chapter. I'm not sure. I think I did a pretty well job at describing how bored Sebastian must've been, and how limited he felt (cause that's how I'd feel, hyperactive me, mwuhaha)._

_I'd like to thank all of you for reading and reviewing. Please tell me what you did and what you didn't like about this whole story. I really enjoyed writing it, but your kind reviews made me want to write more and upload more. I'm glad that I make people happy with my stories, apart from myself (because writing is more or less my drug)._

_There will be more coming up very very soon, I'm really looking forward to it. I'm brainstorming so much lately! Definitely expect more. Oh, and the sickfic is coming along pretty well, just have a little writer's block, but that will most likely disappear in a couple of hours. Thank you all for reading and please give me your opinion! Love you all and so long!_


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